Reports, proud muckraking, photos, videos and musings from the veteran LGBT and AIDS human rights advocate Michael Petrelis. Based in San Francisco since 1995.
Contact: MPetrelis_at_AOL_dot_com.
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Monday, November 30, 2009

Anyone Seen Jacobs/Courage's 2010 Research?

More hot air masquerading as political leadership was emitted today by Rick Jacobs, the chief of everything at his supposed 700,000 membership org, telling the community what many already knew - Jacobs was divorcing his org from the 2010 effort to repeal Prop 8 with another prop. Predictable as a sunrise, the blogosphere and the AP reprinted Jacobs' release, and no attention was paid to the missing "extensive and groundbreaking research."

I do so hate to be the skunk at the Gay Inc garden party hosted by Courage and Lambda Legal, but can someone show me, and the rest of the affected community, this amazing research? If Gay Inc gave a damn about transparency, we would see these two orgs sharing the research leading to their decision, on our behalf. Ain't happening.

The Courage Campaign, in partnership with Lambda Legal, has recently concluded the first phase of extensive and groundbreaking research about public beliefs and concerns about marriage and homosexuality. It confirmed that attitudes are shifting steadily toward equal treatment of same-sex couples, and that conversations among family members and other close relationships inevitably speed the process. The statement released today is concurrent with a Lambda Legal statement.

I have not omitted the link from Courage to their alleged research. Courage has not made it public. We just have to take Jacobs' word. And don't bother looking to Lambda for the data. Their site hasn't even posted the joint release, never mind the data.

Rick Jacobs, founder of the Los Angeles-based Courage Campaign, said Monday that polling and other research his organization commissioned shows that gay marriage supporters do not have the financial backing, leadership or edge in public opinion to try to overturn Proposition 8 in 2010.

Nothing about the actual research and what it allegedly shows. Would it trouble the AP too much to ask Jacobs to produce his research for public inspection? Probably, and Jacobs knows it.

He has escaped any real scrutiny about his self-proclaimed 700,000 members, how all of the important decisions for his supposed grassroots org are always made by him, and why the org's failed deliver anything substantive in the year since Prop 8 passed.

Jacobs and his Courage toy were supposed to be the anti-Geoff Kors and anti-EQCA, and he's failed to deliver on his many promises. If Jacobs had any sense, he would fold his operation into EQCA, end his big-dick contest with Kors, and merge their orgs and egos, for the damn good of the movement. I know, it's a pipe dream to think Jacobs and Kors would unify forces, and finally begin coordinating together, for the greater good of California gays.

All I want is for Jacobs to show us his research, and the press and bloggers to stop serving as stenographers for Courage or any Gay Inc org.

Meanwhile, Equality California is standing outside of supermarkets asking people to sign their pledge for a 2012 Ballot Initiative. They are purposefully doing this to confuse people so they won't sign the real 2010 Ballot initiative.